


The Hidden Colony (Reworking!)

by straypunk



Series: Space Cowboy, Steven Universe [2]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, F/M, Gen, Multi, Not Beta Read, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Steven Universe Future, Post-Steven Universe: The Movie
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-06
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-01-24 04:07:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21332026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/straypunk/pseuds/straypunk
Summary: This is going to go through a lil' bit of a rework, as it's switching places with its sequel!Thisfic will now be the sequel.Steven's adventures in space aren'tquiteover, just yet.There are Gems that never got word of the universe-wide peace that Steven helped establish. There's an entire colony worth of off-color and defective Gems, who have no idea that the war is over—no idea that they can be themselves, without fear.But nothing is ever easy.
Relationships: Connie Maheswaran/Steven Universe, Steven Universe & Everyone, Steven Universe & Original Gem Character(s)
Series: Space Cowboy, Steven Universe [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1648330
Comments: 6
Kudos: 40





	1. i don't like how familiar this is

There's a distinct _ringing_ in his ears, but Steven can't seem to identify its origin.  
  
His sight is fuzzy, colors blurring and overlapping. The shapes he _can_ make out are completely foreign, and there's a near-blinding light shining from somewhere above. He manages a weak groan, lifting his sore arm to block the glare. That _ringing_ is still hammering away at his ears, but it's... distinctly _siren-like_.   
  
Steven's heartbeat quickens. Is he in an ambulance?  
  
As his vision comes into focus, the boy's blood runs cold. He's not in the back of an ambulance, lying on a gurney, with paramedics checking him over. He's in a little square room with pale yellow walls, and a humming forcefield at the front. Chilling familiarity rushes into his mind—the Hand-ship, Peridot and Jasper bickering in the hallway, Ruby and Sapphire,his guardians helping him escape before the ship crashed on the beach... the sense of deja-vu is somewhat unnerving.  
  
He sits up, muscles protesting at the action. Something's... off. He blinks, a question spilling from his lips. "... How did I even _get here?_"  
  
From what he can recall, he and the Crystal Gems were going to visit—or had they _already_ been visiting?—one of the dismantled colonies within Homeworld space. They'd gotten word of "strange activity" on the planet's surface. The Diamonds weren't even aware of the situation, since they'd pulled all their forces from that sector...  
  
His eyes widen. He doesn't actually remember _leaving_ Earth... he's just pulling blanks. How much time is he missing? Hours worth? _Days?!_  
  
Steven glances down at himself, checking his pink letter jacket and jeans' pockets for any sort of clue. Aside from a stray piece of unwrapped gum and some loose change, he finds nothing—which is twice as upsetting, since his cellphone is nowhere to be seen.  
  
The Gems might not know where he is, and might not have any way to track him.  
  
Dad might not know where he is, or what even happened...  
  
_Connie_ might not know where he is.  
  
His heart hammers in his chest, the alarm now just white-noise to him. He could potentially be hundreds—_thousands_—of lightyears away from Earth or Homeworld, and no one could even be aware that he's missing. Breathing quickening with mounting panic, Steven struggles to his feet. He utters a whimper, glancing about before his eyes land on the staticy forcefield.  
  
"I gotta get out of here—"  
  
The room jolts and _quakes_ without warning, a startled gasp ripping from Steven's throat as he tumbles backwards. The alarm wails on, even louder than before. Footsteps clatter in the distance, and frantic-laced voices echo from around a corner. Using the wall for support, Steven crawls to his feet, breathing still uneven as he starts for the forcefield. He sticks his hand into the static, a sharp tingling shooting up his arm. He shivers as he passes through the barrier with some difficulty, stumbling out the other side.  
  
The hallway is just as yellow as his cell, but there's something distinctly _old_ about the interior. Not magic-tech-era-_old_, but still... _old_. The hallway appears worn down. It's patch-worked in some scattered places, bits of off-grey metal not matching the pale yellow. He looks ahead, pushing forward down the hall, toward where he'd heard the voices.  
  
Steven keeps his pace at a brisk jog, trying to even out his breathing. "The Gems are probably on their way... yeah, they're—they're probably tracking me right now—"  
  
The hallway shudders once more, but Steven keeps his balance. He presses on. _'The ship must be under attack... maybe the Gems have caught up to me, and are fighting to get inside?' _the thought quickens his pace, and a smile breaks across his face. Yes, _yes,_ that had to be it!  
  
And yet, when he reaches a door that's ajar, he can't shake this feeling of doubt. Surely, his luck couldn't be _that_ good.  
  
Inside the room ahead, are five figures. Gems of varying hues are manning stations, shouting to and at each other. Two rubies are fumbling with sparking controls, and a tall purple gem is barking orders to a bluish-black gem at some kind of communications station. A lone pearl, deep blue in color, is curled up in the corner of the room, terrified eyes avoiding the view-screen.  
  
A lone Roaming Eye ship is in full view on the screen, a set of canons trained straight ahead—presumably toward the ship.  
  
The bluish-black gem snaps her head around to glare at her purple companion, expression on the brink of sheer rage. "Chalcedony, I'm _trying,_ but your screaming isn't making this go any faster."  
  
The tall gem throws up her hands with a snarl, her lavender ponytail whipping the air as she whirls away from her cohort. The rubies seem completely unaware of their superiors' squabble, as they scramble across the expansive set of controls. Quite a motley crew... they all have a Diamond insignia on their uniforms, the purple gem—Chalcedony—and the rubies sporting bright yellow emblems, while the bluish-black gem and her pearl have Blue Diamond's mark.  
  
The moment his gaze settles on the aforementioned pearl, his eyes go wide. She's staring right at him, eyes full of panic. Steven grimaces as she opens her mouth, sure that his cover has been blown—but no sound comes out. Not even a squeak.  
  
He stares black, flabbergasted as she seizes up and ducks her head. The poor thing is _trembling_, her short hair ruffling where her fingers are digging into her scalp. A small part of him wants to laugh, because _surely_ this is a fluke, and she's going to start screaming at any second, he just knows it. And yet, another part of him aches for her. She could still very much be under the notion that "Pearls are objects." He wants nothing more than to try and comfort her, but... these aren't ideal circumstances.  
  
The chaotic scene continues to unfold, undisturbed by his presence.  
  
A new face statics onto the view-screen—a light purple-pink gem with short, pale hair that covers one of her eyes—catching everyone's attention. Her expression is calm, serious, as she glowers at the crew before her. _"Surrender, and we won't have to disable your engines. We've already taken out your weapons, so this will be much less painful if you don't kick up a fuss."_  
  
Chalcedony's arms shake with anger as she fumes silently, all eyes turning to her. After a tense few seconds, her posture goes slack, and she heaves out a sigh. "Then let's just _get this over with._"  
  
The new gem's lips quirk into a subtle smirk, clearly pleased with herself. _"Prepare to be boarded,_" she says, before the transmission cuts off.  
  
That feeling of electric chaos has dispersed from the air, now replaced with wary dread. The rubies glance between each other, before stepping away from the controls, but one stops dead in her tracks. Steven locks eyes with her, and a knot forms in his stomach. He bites his lip, taking a tentative step back into the hallway.  
  
The ruby's voice shrills as she cries out, pointing at him. "She _escaped!!_"  
  
Steven doesn't bother to stick around. Backing away from the doorframe, he tears down the corridor opposite from where he came from. He considers stealing a glance over his shoulder, but a smattering of footfalls tells him all he needs to know. His mind races and he makes a sharp turn, skidding around a corner. Everything looks _the same_, the hallway he's sprinting down nearly identical to the one before. These gems know this ship better than he does, and they're going to catch up to him sooner or later—so trying to play hide-and-hope-they-don't-find-you is probably a _really_ stupid idea. And yet, as he turns yet another corner, a door is sliding open. The perfect place to _hide_.  
  
Steven barely registers what he's doing, before he's bolting through the opening, unable to catch himself as he crashes into something.  
  
His gaze jerks up, after he lands flat on his back, the wind knocked out of him. The shape of a some_one_ registers in his haze of panic, a familiar, deep purple eye staring down at him. Steven blinks forcefully, looking up at the purple-pink gem from earlier. She's... a lot shorter, in person.  
  
The gem breathes out a strangled exhale, looking him up and down. "What the _actual—?"_  
  
"I–I, uh—" Steven pulls himself up into a semi-sitting position, freezing when the gem's expression hardens. He cracks a half-grin, hoping he doesn't look too threatening. "... H-Hi, I'm—"  
  
A lilac blade is in his face before he can finish speaking, the gem now brandishing a hefty shortsword. He flinches, but she keeps the weapon trained on him.  
  
It would seem he's been promptly tossed out of the frying pan, and into the fire.


	2. this is a lot to take in

This gem _vaguely_ reminds him of his Amethyst, her circular gem located off-center on her chest—but she's a few heads taller, and a _lot_ angrier. That's about where the similarities end, since he doubts Amethyst would wear anything _remotely_ militantish. This gem's outfit consists of a jacket-like top, some simple pants, and a pair of boots. Her expression is still fearsome, lips drawn back in a snarl.  
  
_And _the _sword_ is still in his face. He's really starting to worry about being run through, at any second.  
  
She sneers at him, eye tracing down toward his torso—landing on the bright yellow star on his shirt. Something flashes in her eye—something he can't quite read. "... Why do you have that emblem?"  
  
Steven's jaw loosens, but he's at a loss for words. He squints at her, trying to gauge her expression, but a new voice jerks his thoughts away.  
  
"_Stars_, Spirit, will ya lay off it? It's probably scared enough, as is," a yellow-golden gem pokes out from behind her hostile cohort. Her light blonde hair is short, but her bangs cover her eyes. She's wearing a bright smile, and a fairly simple outfit—a vest and a two-tone bodysuit.  
  
The purple-pink gem side-eyes the newcomer, but keeps her blade on Steven's face. "Citrine—"  
  
The gold-yellow gem glances down toward him, her smile warping into a slight frown. "It probably can't even understand us. Besides, it's just an organic—it can't actually hurt us."  
  
..._ It?_  
  
Steven has to do a few double takes, but this Citrine gem _definitely_ called him an _it_ several times. Faint mental images of Holly Blue Agate come to mind, and he can't hold back a grimace. It's going to be the Zoo all over again, isn't it? Probably something worse, with his luck.  
  
That purple-pink gem—Citrine called her _Spirit_, if Steven heard correctly—continues to stare him down, blade unwavering. Noise from the corridor behind them draws her attention, her gaze sweeping up toward the open door. "... Take it to Kunzite. She'll know what to do with it."  
  
Steven debates grumbling _"I'm right here,"_ but he's made enough enemies today, so he keeps his mouth shut. Spirit retracts her shortsword from his face, and starts forward, Steven still unable to get any kind of read on her. He suppresses a shudder, before a golden-yellow hand reaches out toward him.  
  
Citrine smiles down at him, palm outstretched. Steven remains silent as he takes her hand, the gem helping him to his feet. She grins, seeming quite satisfied with her progress, already. She takes a few steps deeper into the ship, tugging him along. The boy trails behind her, still holding her hand, as he begins to analyze his new surroundings.  
  
It's similar in color and layout to the Roaming Eye the Crystal Gems used to have, but the short entrance-corridor is new. Maybe it's a custom installment? Steven stops short as he gets a full view of the deck, seeing a couple of new gems. The actual deck is familiar, so this must be a standard Roaming Eye with some added weapons and do-dads.  
  
An amethyst is closest to them, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape as she stares at Steven. She's more akin to one of the Famethyst, in terms of height, but instead of a soft purple, her skin is a deep violet. Her dark hair is styled in some kind of long, side-shaved undercut, and her clothing looks very _punkish_, with ripped leggings and a sleeveless biker-style jacket. His Amethyst would greatly approve.  
  
"_Uhh,_ Citrine..." she lifts a hand to point at him, but lowers it, reconsidering. "I thought Spirit doesn't like it when you bring in strays?"  
  
Citrine just laughs in response, and Steven's gut begins to twist. They're just... _talking_ as if he can't even hear them. He's not quite sure how to feel about this treatment, but that gnarled grip in his chest is _anything_ but pleasant. He casts a weary glance at Citrine, exhaling just as she speaks.  
  
"It's not mine, this time! She wants me to deliver it to Kunzite," the golden gem says, looking toward another gem, who's seated at a control pannel. "Hey, Kunzite! I've got something for you!"  
  
A pinkish, slender gem—presumably Kunzite—turns toward Citrine. Steven can see she has some fairly baggy clothing, and a hooded shawl. Her eyes land on Steven, and her jaw _drops_. "Where did you manage to find—!? _HOW_ did you find—!?" she stands up, throwing her hood back to reveal a head of short, neon-pink hair.  
  
Steven winces, instinctively trying to back away, but Citrine's grip is ironlike. He squirms, heart racing as he reaches to pry his trapped hand out of her grasp, but the golden gem holding him laughs again, and pulls him in front of her. "It ran smack into Spirit! Chalcedony must've picked it up somewhere—"  
  
"_First_ of all, humans are not _its,_ Citrine—" the pink gem is hardly a few steps away, now. "—You're not only being _rude,_ but you're scaring..." she trails off, expression shifting to concern. "Uh... _Her?_"  
  
"H-Him," Steven manages a nervous smile, while a delirious sense of lightheadedness creeps up on him.  
  
Citrine leans around him with a gasp. "Whoa, it _can_ understand—!"  
  
"_HE_ can understand us," Kunzite's lips curl back into a sneer, and she hisses out a sigh. "_This_ is why we can never take you anywhere."  
  
The dark amethyst watches them in mildly confused silence, but her eyes are locked onto Steven. He steals a quick look at her, and she tenses up, hands twitching into fists. Citrine releases Steven's hand quite abruptly, before she strides over to her deep-purple friend. The amethyst visibly relaxes, if only a bit, as the golden gem reaches her side.  
  
Steven looks toward Kunzite, his mouth dry. "Is... she okay?"  
  
Kunzite's brows furrow, worry written all over her face as she casts a glance toward the two gems. "Amethyst just... she hasn't had very good experiences with organics. You'll have to forgive her for being..." she pauses, eyes glancing up as she searches for a word. "... Standoffish."  
  
He gives her a weak smile, nodding. "I can understand that, actually... I have a gem-friend back home, who used to be pretty skittish."  
  
Kunzite blinks sharply. "Back home?" she echoes. "You... live on a gem-controlled planet?"  
  
Gem _controlled_ planet? Now it's Steven's turn to be confused, and he's about to ask _why_ she would say that, when a figure steps on deck—that Spirit gem, from before—carrying five purple-hued bubbles in her arms. Each have one gem in them. A chill runs up the back of Steven's neck, as she walks right past him, toward Citrine and Amethyst. Sure, he's never seen those Homeworld gems fight, but _four_ against one? The pearl probably didn't put up a fight, but _still_.  
  
"I hope Spirit Quartz didn't scare you," Kunzite's voice startles his attention back toward her. "She can be kind of... _rough edged,_ but she's just protective of us."  
  
Garnet and Pearl come to mind, and Steven nods. "I can understand that, too."  
  
He dares to look toward the three gems, catching the tail-end of an order from Spirit, as she hands off the bubbled gems to Amethyst. The purple-pink gem turns toward Kunzite, not even giving Steven half a glance.  
  
"Head back once we're detached. I'm going to take one last sweep of the ship before I wipe the systems, then I'll be right behind you," Spirit says.  
  
Kunzite nods, watching her turn and leave once more, the door closing behind the gem. Kunzite utters a heavy sigh, before addressing Steven. "Well... I suppose you have... a lot of questions."  
  
_That's_ new. Steven has to take a second to let his mind catch up, because _yes,_ he has _more_ than a lot of questions. "I... have a few, yeah. Oh—uh, I'm Steven, by the way," he offers his hand to shake, if a bit hesitantly.  
  
To his surprise, Kunzite returns the handshake quite naturally, and she beams a smile at him. "Oh stars, I'm sorry—I know humans typically have names, so I should have asked for it sooner."  
  
It shouldn't be _weird_ that she's so polite, but his heart is so much lighter because of it. After so many strangers wanted him dead or worse, this change of pace is... nice. Steven utters a gentle laugh, as the handshake breaks off. "It's okay, really. So, I guess... I guess my first question would be along the lines of who you guys are."  
  
Kunzite motions for him to follow, as she starts toward the ship's control pannel. "A good first question. You've already met Spirit Quartz, Citrine, and Amethyst, but as for, well... who we're _with_, so to speak, we're not of the rebellion, or Homeworld."  
  
Steven trails behind her, listening intently. Now that she mentions it, none of them bare any sort of emblem... no stars, no diamonds. "So you're all neutral?"  
  
"In a _sense_, I suppose," she frowns, sitting down at the pilot's station. "I... hope you'll be alright with accompanying us back to our colony. We... don't exactly have the resources to make a round-trip past Homeworld-controlled space."  
  
_Oh._ Steven's face falls a little, but he gives her a reassuring smile. "Yeah, that—that's alright. You've got me curious about your colony, now."  
  
It isn't a lie, since these gems are unlike any he's met, but... that longing in his voice is thinly veiled, at best. Kunzite doesn't seem entirely convinced that he's not disappointed, but she lets it slide. "Well, it's... a bit of a story, but we have time."  
  
With a flick of her hand on the controls, shapes and symbols alighting where she touches, Kunzite calls forth a chair for him, which Steven takes without hesitation.  
  
"There are gems who are part of the Diamond Authority, and those who fought Homeworld—the rebellion members," she casts a glance down at his shirt. "I assume you're familiar with them, judging by that star?"  
  
"I am actually a Crystal Gem," he says with a smile.  
  
She blinks, eyes tracing his face and flicking back to the bright emblem. "... _Huh_. Then this will be easier to explain than I thought!" she grins at him, fiddling with the controls in front of her once again. "Some gems aren't accepted in Homeworld, but they can't, or don't want, to fight. That's where we come in."  
  
The stars on the viewscreen begin to move, as the ship lurches forward. Deeper into space, further away from known territory. They aren't going at warp speed, which is an odd comfort to Steven. The colony Kunzite mentioned must not be too far away.  
  
"Our founder, Purple Moonstone, created a haven for gems like myself," Kunzite continues. "My uh, skills aren't exactly for combat, and I... I wanted more than just... _cycles_ of repeated _nothing._ My designated purpose didn't align with what I really wanted to do."  
  
"What did you want to do?" Steven asks.  
  
Another grin spreads across her face, and Kunzite gives him a cheerful side-glance. "I wanted to study organics. Earth organics, to be more precise. The plants and animals on that planet are just _amazing,_ and human culture is fascinating!" she looks away, somewhat sheepish. "I will admit, we haven't been able to go back to Earth for a _very_ long time, so my human-studies are a bit dated."  
  
"So you're like... an anthropologist! Someone who studies cultures and stuff."  
  
"_Anthropologist..._" Kunzite tries out the word a few more times, muttering it to herself in different tones, before giggling. "_Oo_, I do like that word! Thank you for the new title, Steven."  
  
He can't help but chuckle at her reaction. Something new on the viewscreen catches his attention, and he redirects his gaze toward the stars. In the approaching distance is a planet of varying pink hues, some areas light and pale, while others are more a deep maroon. A pink planet with magenta oceans...  
  
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Kunzite asks. "That's where The Outcasts live. That's our home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beauty is often in the eye of the beholder, but space has some wicked-cool sights.


	3. Announcement/Update

_Yeesh_, I haven't touched this poor fic since November of last year-

For those of you who like these characters and are interested in seeing where this story will go, fret not—I haven't given up on it! I recently went through my notes for this & its sort-of-sequel, and realized _this_ fic would serve as a better "sequel" than the one I have planned. (I use "sequel" pretty loosely, as you won't have to have read one to 100% understand the other. They'll be able to be enjoyed separately, but the sequel would have some little scattered references to the prequel.)

Since this fic is only a couple chapters deep, I'll only have to make some minor edits (if anything even really needs editing at all), after I get done with the now-prequel fic. I'm gonna be merging these into a series, I just....... need to figure out a name for it asdfg-

At any rate, to make a long ramble short, I'm gonna be shelving this fic for a while, but it'll be back!

Now, I don't wanna spoil to much for this new one, but I will reveal the title. (That's all y'er gettin' until I draft that first chapter lol)

**"The Cult of Dionysius"**

See you guys soon! ;D


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